The present invention relates to a drive.
More particularly, the invention relates to a pneumatic drive (motor).
Still more specifically, the invention herein disclosed relates to a pneumatic drive having a variable-surface working piston.
In recent years the costs of operating many of the long-established types of drive mechanisms have been subject to strong upward pressures. A prime example of this is, of course, the steady price increase of fuel for internal combustion engines. In view of these developments, serious efforts are being made to develop alternative power sources to combat both the rising cost and the scarcity of fuel for the more conventional types.
A potentially attractive alternative is the field of pneumatic drives. These, however, as known from the prior art are subject to two disqualifying drawbacks: they are not adequately efficient and they waste a great deal of compressed air which is discharged to the atmosphere and must be replenished with the expenditure of expensive fuel. For these reasons, pneumatic drives have to date not been able to make any serious impact as a replacement for more conventional (e.g. gasoline-powered) drive arrangements.